Sell a Home in a Tough Market - What Agents & Sellers Need To Know

Sell a Home! It's Easier To Do When
You Know the Real Reason for Selling

Do you know what truly motivates someone to sell a home? People sell homes for various reasons, but as a Realtor, to truly connect with your prospects, it’s best to show them how much you understand their specific reasons for selling.

You must fully understand the hidden motivations of your prospects; otherwise, all your efforts will be in vain.

Remember, homeowners list with Realtors that they know, like, and trust. So the more you can relate to their situation, the better off you will be.

People selling homes have various and diverse needs that must be understood to provide the best services. Unfortunately, many Realtors fail to explore the emotional concerns that their prospects might be facing.

Relationships Create Opportunities to Sell Homes

Of course, most Realtors will know at a surface level that people are selling homes

because they are retiring

because they want to relocate closer to their grandchildren,

or because they are expecting their 3ʳᵈ baby

... but knowing this basic knowledge isn’t enough. You must look beneath the surface and show your prospects that you fully relate to their situation!

Sell a Home Opportunity Example

You may be meeting with a couple that wants to sell a home because of retirement, but do you really understand the concerns they feel as this time in their life approaches?

Having only a basic understanding of their situations is certainly not enough to build a strong relationship with a prospect that wants to sell a home.

To secure their listing, you should consider taking your relationship to a higher level. By investing more time to find out the true motivation behind the sale, you will end up way ahead.

Find out if they are ...

worried about paying their property taxes because of their reduced income

planning to travel and leave their property for an extended period

desirous of having access to more family support as they age.

These are the real selling hot buttons. If you can identify your prospects' true reasons and concerns, you may be chosen to sell their home.

Sell a Home - The Alpha & Omega

Selling homes begins with asking the right questions. If you ask your prospects open-ended questions and let them elaborate on how they feel about selling, you will eventually know their real concerns and make the transition to a new home much more manageable.

Open-ended questions request a detailed answer rather than a yes or no. They begin with why, how, where, tell me, and what - rather than do, can, or are. Try creating a list of three to five questions to ask your prospects to understand their motivation for selling better.

Questions such as…

How do you feel about leaving your home after 30 years?
How do you feel about being closer to your children?
What types of financial changes are you expecting from your retirement?

By knowing how your prospects feel, you can provide them with a more pleasurable selling experience.

Remember that when people sell a home, it’s pretty normal to wonder if they are doing the right thing and what the consequences of their actions might be.

Once a decision to sell a home has been made, you, as a Realtor, can counter this remorseful buying stage by reaffirming the emotional reasons behind the sale.

Dig deep; once you know the real reasons behind selling, you can put your prospect’s mind at ease and remind them of the benefits that they will experience in the long run.